Man in fight that led to bridge guard's death faces charges

Published 6:00 pm, Tuesday, January 22, 2008

A 29-year-old man accused of fighting with a security guard who later died at a downtown international bridge has been indicted on federal charges related to the scuffle.

Pablo Aragon was arrested Tuesday on one count of assault and two counts of committing a violation of Texas law on federal property.

Aragon initially faced a state charge of assault after police said he punched Cruz Vite, a 58-year-old security guard working at a toll booth on the bridge connecting El Paso to Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, on New Year's Day.

The county medical examiner ruled the death a homicide after concluding that the confrontation triggered a fatal heart attack. Dr. Paul Shrode said Vite "had a very bad heart. He was not a healthy man and during the stress it was just too much for his heart and he collapsed and died."

Renee Railey, a spokeswoman for the El Paso County District Attorney's Office, said federal authorities opted to take over the case because the offense occurred on federal property.

Aragon is being held without bond at the El Paso County jail. Jail records do not show if he has a lawyer.